Two 4 One
- sheriosullivan
- Oct 12, 2022
- 3 min read
Updated: Feb 2, 2023
My new novel, "Two 4 One: A Max Daniels Trilogy" has finally been published and is available on Amazon as a Kindle eBook. This is Book 1 of 3 books in this series. I'm so thrilled to share this story as I truly love the two lead female characters, Maxine Daniels and Drew Nickels.
Max has recently acquired her ex-cop father's Private Investigations business after he dies suddenly from a heart attack. Max's goddaughter, Drew, has three favorite things to do: 1. Drink, lots. 2. Boys, lots. 3. Poker, lots. Drew decides she wants to become a PI as she needs money to pay off a gambling debt and she doesn't want her mother to know, so she turns to Max.
I have no problem writing stories, but when it comes to describing a whole novel in one paragraph for the book blurb, I come up short. It's so hard to condense all the characters, plot, and theme into a short essay that hooks the reader and compels them to buy your book (fingers crossed). Lucky for me, my best friend, Rev. Doti Boon, had no problem writing it. This is the description:
P.I. Max Daniels, a buxom redhead, does a routine background check and finds herself involved in arson, murder, blackmail, and personal tragedy. An ex-jockey, an award-winning journalist, and her gambling goddaughter help her bring the suspects to justice. Part 1 of a trilogy.
People ask me all the time how I come up with my stories. Sometimes I'll just get an impression of an idea or a whole scene will come to me. Sometimes I'll see an article in the newspaper that plants a seed in my brain. If I get stuck while I'm working, I'll spend a few moments looking out my window. I live on the 5th floor of my apartment building, and I have the perfect view to watch the moon rising in the night sky or see a flock of Canadian geese flying in formation. Before the pandemic, I used to sit in coffee shops and restaurants to people watch. I'd notice how they walked, their attitudes, how they treated the staff, and, most importantly, I listened to their conversations. My favorite place to eavesdrop is in bars. Often, just the manner of their speech can be noteworthy. I'll hear people have the most intriguing discourse. So, if you see me out and about, drinking coffee, and taking notes, now you'll know why.
Some of my stories include events or situations from my own life. My first novel, "The Paradize Inn," includes quite a bit from my life. My late father was a criminal attorney and Book 2 of this series will involve aspects of my father's first murder trial, which became a sensation in Alameda County when his client was the first acquittal of a 1st degree murder charge in 20 years. Of course, it will be fictionized, but the basic story will be there. Max is confronted by her father's partner who demands paperwork about a case they both worked. This leads to the story in Book 3 of the mystery surrounding her father's retirement, his PI business, and his sudden death.
This is my first trilogy and even though I know the complete stories for this series, I have to finish my third novel, "The Toymaker's Son," before I can start to write the next two books. I wrote The Toymaker's Son a long time ago as a screenplay, (it was a winner in the Willamette Writers' Kay Snow Awards for screenwriting in 1998). (Aside: Two 4 One was also a winner in the Kay Snow Awards for fiction in 2000.) I have always loved the story of Toymaker and during my ‘quarantine’ I decided to re-write it as a novel. My children and I had a family tradition of watching "It's a Wonderful Life" every year on Christmas Eve, and I decided to challenge myself by writing a story in the à la Frank Capra style. Wish me luck!
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